A heated debate about Ottawa diner's spice preference | Letters to the Editor

The spicy beef salad at Lotus of Siam on Bank Street is one of its more uncompromising dishes when it comes to strong flavours. Photo by Tony Caldwell /Postmedia

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A heated debate about Ottawa diner’s spice preference

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Citizen – I urge him to keep pushing for flavour! Full flavour should be the norm and servers can ask clients how they like their food and modify, if necessary.

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Chuck Shields, Ottawa

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No point arguing about differing tastes

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I enjoyed Peter Hum’s article in the June 3rd issue of the Citizen “Fondness for Strong Flavours…”

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There’s a Latin expression: De gustibus non est disputandum which means, essentially, there’s no point arguing about differing tastes. True enough: variety is the spice of life. But as concerns spice as in spicy foods, folks should not think that they are eating food as it was originally made to be eaten, if they request that such foods’ taste be altered to reflect their own palates.

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Douglas Parker, Ottawa

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Don’t turn down the heat!

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Peter Hum recently wondered how much restaurants should tone down their flavours to align with less adventurous eaters. The answer should be obvious. NEVER!

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In fact, I once had the pleasure of accompanying Peter and Vito Pilieci at Ola Cocina to sample their homemade hot sauces. The owner was dismayed that whatever she created, Vito and I kept asking for more heat, to the point she used every pepper she had in stock and still couldn’t slake our heat quest.

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I sympathize with restaurateurs trying to appease the masses, but Peter, don’t let them off the hook! If a plate is supposed to be spicy/zesty that’s how it should be served! And Peter shouldn’t think his BBQ judging clouds his taste buds. He is right to expect heat on certain dishes.

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Doug Wilde, North Gower

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FROM THE ONLINE COMMENT SECTION

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In uncertain times, people aren’t looking for adventure

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I agree – a sad loss of flavour across the board. I believe restaurant owners are overweighting the comments of the vocal and leaving the rest of us without the choice of eating the food the tasty way it was meant to be. I would add to your list the dumbing down of eggs in Tonkatsu soup, which used to have the traditional Japanese tang, but now are bland boiled eggs with the right texture but no flavour normally imparted by the correct marinade. I also eat at the Lotus of Siam. When I first dined there, the server (owner?) asked about our tastes and brought a trivet of incredible flavoured sauces when we indicated our tastes. Subsequently, these were not offered, and the food itself has become blander, while still very tasty. The net result is I eat out less, and am contemplating learning how to do my own Tonkatsu eggs. — Dan Hara

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I sell vintage vinyl records. I get excited if I find a rare record of Bulgarian chanting. But my customers want the same boring Mellencamp record I’ve sold a dozen times. I know how you feel.